Manufacture of hollow glass articles.



4 T. C. -STE|MER.

MANUFACTURE OF HOLLOW GLASS ARTICLES.

APPLECATION FILED MAR. 28, IBM.

Patented Dec. 21, 1915 Plaza. 1

' wrmzssss I INVE NTOR in sr STATES GLASS COMPANY,.OF PITTSBU OF PENNSYLVANIA.

nearnnnsrnvnma, A conronar on 'MAEUFACT'URE OFHOLLOW GLASS ARTICLES.

To all whom it may 06.50am.-

Be it known thatl, THEODORE C. STEIMER,

-a Citizen of the United States, and resident ,of Knoxville, in the county of -Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Manufacture of Hollow-Glass Articles, of which the following is a specification.

The primary objectof this invention is to improve and-facilitate the manufacture of hollow glass articles which owing to their form cannot be fully shaped by pressing making necessary a. supplemental blowmg operation.

- possible only by blowing.

A characteristic of the invention is that the pressing operation determines that dimension of the article which is longitudinal article, the glass for the remaining portion of the direction in which pressure is applied, I

and the mold and plunger are of such form as to give final shape to a portion of'the being so disposed by the pressing'operation that when subjected to air, pressure it will spread or flow as may be required to complete the article, the latter taking place after the mold area has been increased suiiiciently to fully form the blown portion of the article. T

.The invention may be'variously applied. In the adaptation here shown, the length and the exterior configuration of the fin-' ished article, saving and excepting its bottom, are determined and fully defined by the pressing, operation, the external shape thus secured including that portion of the article which ultimately is of larger internal cross:

sectional-[area than the portion whose internalshape is defined by the shape of the plunger. Immediately following the lunger-pressing operation, the mold cavity is en,- larged' to provide space for so distlending the glass, theretofore properly distributed by the action of the plunger, as to permit of such spreading or'expansion by blowing as may benecessary to formthe larger area of he complete article Specification of Letters Patent. P m tfl 21 1 15, Application filed March 28, 1514, Serial No. 827,884. I

The invention is also directed to apparatus or" improved construction for practising the invention in the manufacture of those forms of hollow articles in which the entire.

external shape, exceptingthe bottom, is de termined by'the pressing operation.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 ma vertical section of ap aratus suitable for practising the invention, showing the position of the parts andthe disposition of the glass at the completion of the pressing operation, and Fig. 2 is a similar view at the completion of the blowing operation. Fig. 3 is a vertical cross-section taken at right angles to Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a view of the completed article shown partly in section and partly in elevation, and illustrating in dotted lines the disposition of the glass at the completion of the pressing operation and preceding the blowing operation.

Referring to the drawings, 2 are duplicate side wall parts of a vertically divided mold, hinged together at 3 and mounted to open and close on base or stand t, the lower extremity of the walls being dove-tailed at ,5 to close tightly around the similarly formed flange or boss G'projecting from the base, all as well, known in the art. 7 is the mold ring fitting and cooperating with the top of the mold, and 8 is a press:

' ing plunger which may be operated by any of the well knownplu'nger operating means. Removably fitting the lower ends of mold walls 2 are the interchangeable mold bottoms 9 and 10. Bottom-9 is formed with the rounded upward projection 9 which is adapted to extend well up into the mold, as shown in Fig. l. The corresponding face 10 of bottom 10 is of a form to'impart final shape to the bottom of the article, as shown inFi'g. 2, in the present instance said face being relatively flat. It will be understood that the bottom sections'9 and 10 are interchangeable, so that with either in position the lower end of the mold is fully closed.

' Bottoms 9 and 10 are hinged at 11 and 12, respectively, to base 4 at opposite sides of the sectional mold and adapted to swing downwardly in opposite directions. The base is of box-like form and movable horizontally therein; is a slide 13, on'c end 14 of the slide being formed with the notched up ward projection 15 which cooperates with arm 16 the underside of bottom, for

raising the latterand holding it raised,'as

in Fig, The opposite end 17 'of theslide is for'm'ds-witha correspondingly notched projection 18 which similarly cooperates I With-arm ;19 on the under side of bottom 10' the slide is moved to the right, as in Fig; 1,

projection -ei1gages arm 16 and thereby raises the mold bottom 9 into horizontal; 'mold closing position, the extremity. of arm.

16 fitting thenotched projection, 15 vin such manner. as. to lock the bottom immovably in such position. When the slide is moved tothe left,ub ott om' 9 is relea'se'd'and swings down b gravity and at the same time the notche projection 18 cooperates with arm 19 to raise bottom 10 into operative position and ,to'lock ittherein. I A hook 2'1 pivoted to'arm 16 is adapted to ride loosely on slide end 14; and-serves to draw back the bottom y when in; .lowered position and prevent swinging; asshown in Fig. 2. Ahsimilar hook '22 on, arm 19 cooperates with slide end '17 and performs the same service for mold bottom 19(when thelatter is in lowered.

' position,as in- Fig. 1.

- In the adaptation here-illustrated, a mold is shown for forming a pitcher A having a I belled or enlarged lower portion A, and'the I mold cavity is shaped to give final 'form, and longitudinaldimension to the exterior side surfaces. 'PAnd asthedimension of the Tartiole longitudinal of the direction of '1 pressure is determined by the pressing operation,

" and as the article remains in the mold until p I 27 hinged to standard 28 and turned'out of 40 all portions thereof are iven form, it will-be understood that; mold sections 2 may be so cut or'sh'aped as" to impart any desired external configuration'ian'd. contoun. In the present instancethe'mold is Shaped .toform the article with external 'longitudinalgflats or panels a, also to form a pitcherihaving the belled lower portion A. I a I Mold sections-2 and plunger 8 coiiperate yin sucli ,manner that,- in conjunction with ortion -of- P ring 7, final shape is imparted to portions of the" article by the pressing operation, n

the presexit'instance-to the upper portion 1 of the pitcher including its ornamental top edge and to its handle'b, also to the exterior side portions of the article for its entire length, including its rim-like bottom edge- 0. It' is, however, characteristic of the 1nvention that plunger8 is shorter than the-internal depth oftlie finished article, so that the'lower ortion, save for its external contour, is un ormed or unfinished by the press:

ingoperation, and in the illustrated instance obviously cduld not be formed by a pressing plunger due-to the belled or enlarged lower ,the interior of the finished pitcher. v

It further characteristic of the invention that the 'glass which enters 'into'the subsequently blown formation is disposedby the pressing operation in such manner as to. facilitate such distension. The up.-

vwardly projecting mold bottomv9 comprises anarea-contracting mold wall for that portion of the article which is not given final shape--both. inside and out -by the pressing operation, and the presence of this mold bottom results in pressing theunfinished lower portion of the article with the annular relatively thick glass formation, of. The

, outer surface of this relatively thick portion is of the finished configuration of the article,

"and its inner surface bears the shape of the mold bottom projection 9. Preferably,

'when the plunger is fully depressed, as in Fig. 1, it is in sufficiently close proximity to projection 9 as to impart to the central portion-.6 of the glass a thickness corre-' sponding to that of the bottom of the finishedarticle. p At the completion of the pressing operation an article .is produced of the form shown 1n 1g. 1, andin'dotted'lines in Fig. .4. Immediately following the pressing Op;

eration bottom 9 is lowered and bottom 10 the change in the mold bottom simply resultingin removing a mold-cavity contractlng wall and substituting a mold-cavity enlargmgwall for that part of the mold 'in .which'final-shape is -imparted' to the article by the blowing operation; The; blowing head may be conveniently mounted on arm the way when not-in use." A clamping lever '29 may serve to secure the head tothe' mold in operative position, asin Fig. 3.. Upon admitting the blowing air the-glass inthe thickened portion (Z separates on the'line f midway the surfaces thereof exposed to mold sections-2 and bottom portion 9', and the air pressure results in distending or spreading downwardly the glass against bottom 10 ,and into the final bottom formation of the article, as indicated at 9, thereby imparting 1 enlarged or belled-formation to' the lower portion of the article interior. The glass surebecause it is hottest and hence-weakest midway the opposite chilled faces of'th'e will-part'at line f under the blowing pres-,

thickened portion. In effect,.the thickened glass-tends to split centrally -and combines with the central plunger-formed. part 'ein forming the complete bottom g.- .In further" explanation of the. splittingefi'ect at linev f, it may be stated that molten glass is always appreciably surface chilled by its contact.-

with mold walls. The skin-like-surface re sulting from-this chilling toughens the glass surfaces-so that theportion-niost susceptible to distension or displacement is the pork tion intermediate such*surfaces, i. 6., the

hottest or least chilled portion. Obviously,

the splitting effect at line. 7 under the blowing operation does not continue beyond the depth. necessary for the formation of bottom 9, and hence the bottom rim portion 0 is in no way; impaired.

, The principles underlying the invention may be variously adapted and applied as obviously that part of the mold cavity in Which a portion of the article is given final shape by blowing may be variously con-- tracted for the pressing operation and ex panded or enlarged forthe blowing operation, this without disturbing the position of the article within the mold resulting from the pressing operation, and hence without impairing the dimension of the article longitudinal of the direction of pressure Lwhich is determined by the pressing operation.

I claim: l. The method herein described of producing anopen-end hollow glass article of smaller external cross-sectional area adja-' cent its open end than distant from said end, consisting in forming the full length of the article by pressing glass within a mold and by such pressing imparting final external shape to the full length of the article including the portion thereof of largest external cross-sectional area distantfrom its open end, the pressure-imparting plunger entering and imparting final shape to the interior of the open end of the article,

retaining the article within the mold and with its length-defining exterior surfaces in contact with the mold faces that formed them, enlarging that portion of the mold cavity in axial line with and not reached .by the plunger, and admitting compressed air into the mold-retained article for 6X,

panding the end portion thereof within the enlarged part of the mold.

2. The method herein described of forming an open-end hollow glass article, consisting in subjecting glass Within a mold to plunger pressure and thereby imparting final shape to the exterior of the article and .also by such pressure forming the article with an external depression in axial line with and extending toward the plunger but not reached by, the latter, the glass sur rounding said depression being relatively thick and with its opposite surfaces chilled by the mold faces which formed them, retaining the pressed article within the mold and removing the depression-forming mold part and then admitting compressed air into the plunger-formed cavity of the mold-re tained article with such air acting on the face-chilled relatively thick glass surrounding said depression and operating to split such glass intermediate its chilled faces and thereby 'distend the depression-formed portion of. the article and eliminate the depresv sion. v

3. The method herein described of producing 'an open-end hollow glass article of smaller external cross-sectional area adjacent its open end than distant from said end, consisting in forming the full length of the article by pressing glass within amold and by such pressing imparting final. exter-- nal shape to the full 'length of the article including the portion thereof of largest external cross-sectional area distant from its open end, the pressure-imparting plunger entering and imparting final shape .to the interior of theopen end' of the article, form ing that portion of the article of largest external diameter with an external depression disposed toward and in axial line with the plunger but not reached by the latter and by such depression,forming'the portion of maximum external diameter with relatively thick side walls, retaining the pressureformed article within the mold and 911- splitting action with such splitting starting at the plunger'formed cavity and extending toward the extremity of the article and thereby distending the displaced glass into the enlarged portion of the mold and completing that part of the article which is distant from. its open end.

4. The method herein described of completely forming a hollow glass article in a mold, the configuration of the mold corresponding to the external configuration to be imparted to the article, the mold shaped to form an external depression and corresponding inward bulge in the; article, consisting in pressing molten glass in such mold and thereby imparting final external and internal configuration to the article save the depressed portion thereof, retaining the pressed article in the mold with'the surface portions thereof which have been given final shape in contact with the mold surfaces which shaped them and enlarging the mold cavity by removing the depression-forming portion thereof, and then admitting air under pressure to the pressed cavity of the article and thereby distending the depression formed portion of the article.

5. The method herein described of form- 'tion sof the article and with the plunger imparting fi'nalshape to a portion of the length of vthe interior of the article, forming by" such pres'surean external depression in that portion of thearticle in axialline with 1 but 'not reached by the. plunger, retaining the sign of the-'mold-retained article'and there mold cavity.

pressed blank in the mold and enlarging the mold cavity by eliminating the depressionforming mold part,and' then admitting compressed air into the plunger-formed depresby distending the depressed portion of the article to the full dimensions of the enlarged 6. The method herein described, consisting in pressing'a'hollow glass article within v a mold of irregular contour and thereby im- ,Targement without distorting'the shape imparting ultimate shapeto the entire length of'the external; side portions of an article of irregular shape, retaining the pressed article Within the mold with its irregular side portionsfitting the corresponding irregular porbottom portion of the mold'cayity, and

blowing the glass of the mold-retained article to distend it within the mold cavity enparted by pressing to. the full length of the exterior of the article.

7. The method-herein described, consisting in'providing a mold having the depthof its side portions corresponding to thefull length of the ultimate article and shaped to impart full-length external side form to the Y 35 v its side portions being less than at its side article, the depth of themold intermediate portions, pressing molten glass Within the mold and thereby imparting full length and final external-shape to the side portions of the article.and with the central 'portion'of the article shallower than the side portions,

retaining the article thus formed within the mold and increasing the depth of that por .tion of the mold intermediate the formed side portions of the article, and then distending by air pressure the shallower central portion -of the mold-retained glass without distorting the formed side portions thereof.

In testimony whei'iaor 'l aflix my signature in presence of two Witnesses. I

THEODORE C. STEIMER. J Witnesses: JAMES BRYCE,

.J. M. NESBIT. 

